Words by Emma Jones
"House of Giants is noise" is the first line of their bio on Facebook. Noise is a pretty broad adjective though. To narrow it down I would say "perfectly crafted, instrumental ambiance but also in your face". Intrigued? So you should be! Meet Brisbane's House of Giants - a 5 piece instrumental rock group that is on the precipice of something very big. Although relatively young in terms of how long they've been around for (only a year), their impressive sound and live show would make you think they'd been doing what they do for a very long time.
They're polished yet spontaneous; peaceful yet shocking; chilled out yet oh so groovy. You can see how much time and effort they've put into their songs, not only on the recordings but when they play. You can also see just how much fun they're having whilst doing so. It's no surprise that they've got themselves a few impressive gigs behind them, and ahead of them. We caught up with drummer, Dan Sparks, ahead of one hell of a weekend coming up next week. A headline slot at Rics Bar on the Friday, June 14th (free entry and a free drink courtesy of the band whilst they play!), another gig at X & Y on Saturday, June 15th, and then playing the all ages Valley Vibes Festival on Sunday, June 16th (alongside fellow Brisbanites: DZ Deathrays, Millions and Gung Ho)!
Keep your ears pricked and your eyes peeled for these guys, Brisbane. They're in for big things!
"House of Giants is noise" is the first line of their bio on Facebook. Noise is a pretty broad adjective though. To narrow it down I would say "perfectly crafted, instrumental ambiance but also in your face". Intrigued? So you should be! Meet Brisbane's House of Giants - a 5 piece instrumental rock group that is on the precipice of something very big. Although relatively young in terms of how long they've been around for (only a year), their impressive sound and live show would make you think they'd been doing what they do for a very long time.
They're polished yet spontaneous; peaceful yet shocking; chilled out yet oh so groovy. You can see how much time and effort they've put into their songs, not only on the recordings but when they play. You can also see just how much fun they're having whilst doing so. It's no surprise that they've got themselves a few impressive gigs behind them, and ahead of them. We caught up with drummer, Dan Sparks, ahead of one hell of a weekend coming up next week. A headline slot at Rics Bar on the Friday, June 14th (free entry and a free drink courtesy of the band whilst they play!), another gig at X & Y on Saturday, June 15th, and then playing the all ages Valley Vibes Festival on Sunday, June 16th (alongside fellow Brisbanites: DZ Deathrays, Millions and Gung Ho)!
Keep your ears pricked and your eyes peeled for these guys, Brisbane. They're in for big things!
1. Describe your music
in three words:
Instrumental, alternative and… groove.
2. How did you get
together?
We [Dylan, myself, Tim and Zac] were playing as another band
with a singer, but he left about a year ago. We got Jacque in and just started
jamming, and we liked it.
3. What are your
thoughts on the Brisbane music scene?
I think it’s pregnant at the moment. There’s something big
coming.
4. Do you think it’s
accommodating for up and coming bands?
It could be better. There’s a lot of… Shit… that needs to be
filtered through. There’s a preference to certain genres over others. Indie
music, like the indie four piece, is really big in Brisbane. Anything other
than that – you’ve got to work harder to be noticed and to get gigs. It’s not
easy.
5. So you’ve scored
yourself a set in the upcoming Valley Vibes! How do you think your set will be
received by a) a younger audience and b) a festival as opposed to a gig?
We played Valley Vibes last year, it was our first gig
actually. I think we were received pretty well from that. We found the younger
audience really dig it. Because our band has such a wide variety of influences,
there’s so much there for everyone. Zac and Tim were from heavy metal
backgrounds, so that comes through when they play.
6. So do you have to
prepare differently for a festival?
No it’s the same sort of thing. High intensity, high energy
– we just want to put on a good show.
7. Are you nervous to be
playing alongside DZ Deathrays and Millions?
Not really. It will be fun. We’re all really excited.
8. What’s your favourite
place in Brisbane?
The Hifi is a really good music venue.
9. What’s the best thing
about House of Giants?
Just enjoying myself, I get to play with my best mates and I
think that comes across when we play. Everyone can see we’re having fun and
enjoying ourselves.
10. What inspires you?
To create music that people enjoy. We are all involved in
the creative process of our music so it’s a collaborative effort. Someone will
come in with a riff or a sound and we’ll build it from there.
11. What’s the hardest
thing about what you do?
Because we’re instrumental, we have to keep enough space
between the songs and not have too much going on at once. Also getting everyone
to rehearsals!
12. What’s the best thing
about what you do?
Just enjoying myself – we all do – and having a good time.
Seeing an audience member enjoying themselves as well. There’s no better
feeling.
13. What’s next?
Just to keep climbing up the ladder. We’re recording, but I
think we’re looking at building more of a fan base before we release anything.
We’ll release one or two songs along the way and maybe look more seriously at
an EP maybe in the middle of next year. There’s no point in pressing CDs you’re
not going to sell. We just want to build our audience first and have a good
time whilst doing it.
